Friday, June 11, 2010

Say Cheese!

I have almost finished day seventeen in France and I am still madly in love with this country. There is just so much to see. Today, I walked by an authentic cheese shop with a zillion different kinds and I couldn't help but peek in...even a cheese shop is interesting. :)

Lately, I am starting to classify myself as sort of a cheese expert. My host mom has gone out of her way to visit that particular cheese shop a couple of times a week so I can experiment with different varieties and flavors. My favorites so far are the ones most similar to what we call bleu cheese, but in France it is never just called bleu cheese. There are thousands of varieties...it is a lot more complicated than the "American, Swiss or Cheddar" options we get at Subway. Yesterday, I was served three different varieties of bleu cheese, a brie and a log of sheep fromaige that was interesting, to say the least.

After some serious taste tests I give you my winner......drumroll please.... ROQUEFORT!

Before I came to France, I wouldn't touch bleu cheese with a ten-foot pole but there is something about living in another country that energizes your taste buds and this special variety of bleu cheese is my absolute favorite! Mark is going to love me even more when I get back because I finally share his love for smelly, moldy cheese! But for real, this is some great stuff--it has such a strong, distinct taste that just fills my mouth, I love it. However, I did learn today that the mold in Roquefort is penicillin and I am allergic to penicillin, but I am making an assumption that it is 1. a different type of penicillian or 2. that I am really not allergic to penicillin. I hope one of the two is right or I may have a problem in the morning!

Now; I can't just share my favorites...I also have to share my least favorite too and this little guy below was not very good.

I have been trying to find the name of the French speciality but all I know is that it came out of something that "baaaaad" and it definitely smelled like it could have been a sheep. I don't know if it was the mold or the smell or the taste that turned me off...or maybe all three, but whatever it was I definitely will not be trying it again. My suggestion is to stick with the blue veined cheese and you must try the Roquefort!